


An Alternative Meeting

by brightlightbandit



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: M/M, Pre-Canon, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-12
Updated: 2018-03-12
Packaged: 2019-03-30 08:16:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13947498
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brightlightbandit/pseuds/brightlightbandit
Summary: Coach takes Eric to a Bruins game for his 18th birthday, Jack bumps into Eric in line.





	An Alternative Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> This is more of a drabble than anything, not really any plot, just rambling.
> 
> All characters belong to Ngozi, I'm just borrowing them to have some fun.

Eric doesn't follow the NHL. Yes, he played hockey, but that didn't mean he had to follow the sport, he just liked playing. His father couldn't grasp this though. He thought that playing a sport meant that you should be completely immersed in every aspect of it. Eric is 17, he's gay, and he lives in Georgia, he's already constantly afraid of his daddy seeing as nothing more than a disappointment. His figure skating, his baking, he knew Coach overheard his football players calling his son gay and other nasty things. Coach never said anything about it to him though, so Eric went on trying to prove that just because he didn't play football, didn't mean he wasn't an athlete. His figure skating should have been proof enough of that, but contact sports are more manly than skating, so Eric chose the next best thing. Hockey allowed him to stay on the ice and got Coach to look at him like he was a son he could be proud of. Still, just playing the game wasn't good enough, he was supposed to know the culture, follow the teams, know all the players and which teams were doing good. He just didn’t care. Coach still didn't get that.  
"Junior come in here, I have a surprise for you." Eric was always a bit nervous when Coach called him into the den, it was overwhelmingly football themed, and he always felt a bit guilty.  
"What is it, Coach?" Seeing as his birthday was coming up soon, Eric assumed it had something to do with that, but he was still on edge.  
"I know you don't follow hockey, but you're going to be going to school up there near Boston next year, and they're playing a game on your birthday this year." Eric kept his mouth shut, waiting for him to go on. "I got us tickets. I thought we could fly up there, see the game, take a look at where you'll be going to school." Coach says it gruffly, stating facts, not making a gesture.  
"Wow," Eric exhales. "That sounds really awesome Coach, thank you so much." Despite his disinterest in the NHL, it did sound awesome. Eric was excited to see Samwell, and it would be nice to spend some time with his father outside of his hometown, which was tainted with the knowledge that football was the sport that Eric should be playing, and he chose hockey instead.  
"Alright. Well." The realization that going on this trip with his father was going to mean a lot of awkward pauses in conversation hit him suddenly.  
"Right, yeah. I'm gonna go help Mamma with dinner." He fled back to the kitchen and easy conversation his mother. 

The game was way more exciting to watch than Bitty had thought it could be. Watching it on television the few times he'd made himself try to be interested was nothing like this. It was the Bruins v. the Falconers, and they were obviously both amazing teams. The way they slammed into each other on the ice terrified him though. He would be going from the safety of no checking to having to be able to take a check next year in college, and he wasn't sure how he was going to do it. They were all so big. Were college hockey players going to be that big?  
When his eyes weren't on the game, they were on a rowdy group of people a few rows down from him. They all looked to be a couple years older than him, and they were screaming profanities about everything that happened on the ice. After a while, he noticed that one of them was wearing a Samwell hat and felt a rush of excitement. Every time he thought about the fact that he would be there next year he got the same rush of excitement he did when he first realized he'd been accepted. The group consisted of four boys and a girl who was obviously much smaller than the rest of them. Eric wondered idly which one she was dating.  
He was drawn back into the game when his father made a comment about the goal that had been scored. Eric agreed as if he had actually been paying attention, and tried to focus on the game again. Boston was up by one, but he didn't actually care who won, as he wasn't supporting any particular team. His eyes moved back to the group he had been watching. The girl was sitting in between two boys, he couldn't see much of them as he was sitting behind them, but one of them had a magnificent head of hair, and the other had a Samwell hat on his head, and when he turned to say something to one of his friends Eric took a very appreciative look at his jawline.  
He allowed himself a moment to fantasize about running into this beautiful boy at Samwell the next year, about getting coffee, and making out, and going on dates. He breaks out of this fantasy by looking over at his dad and making a comment about the Bruins defense. He keeps watching the group though, and he wishes he had something like that, friends who he could be himself with. He hoped that's what he'd have next year. That's why he was moving away, moving out of Georgia, where he'll never be allowed to be himself. 

After the game Coach excuses himself to use the bathroom while Eric goes to buy himself a Falconers hat, they had won, and that was reason enough for him to support them really. They agree to meet near the exit after Eric has made his purchase. He was standing in line tweeting about the game when someone bumped into him from behind. "Oh!" He exclaimed, trying not to drop his phone or fall into the person in front of him, who happened to be a very intimidating looking man. Whoever bumped him caught his arm and kept him upright.  
"Sorry about that," a soft voice said from behind him. Turning around, Bitty noticed the piercing blue eyes first, then the Samwell cap. It was the same boy that he had been watching during the game. "My friends were messing around and the shoved me into you."  
"Oh my gosh, it's fine! No harm done, didn’t even drop my phone!" Bitty plasters on his biggest smile and holds his phone up to prove his point. The guy smiles at him amusedly.  
"You aren't from around here, are you?" It sounds like he's flirting with him, but that must be Eric projecting.  
"Is it that obvious?" He asks, exaggerating his accent, a bit. The boy laughs, Eric feels a warmth spread through his chest. "I'm from Georgia actually, my dad brought me up to see the game for my birthday," he explained.  
"Oh, are you a Bruins fan?" The boy seemed interested, Eric couldn't imagine why, but he wasn't going to overanalyze getting the chance to talk to the most attractive guy he'd ever seen.  
"To be completely honest I don't actually follow hockey," Eric says it quickly, like a confession. The boy seems pleased by this, Eric doesn't understand why. "I play hockey actually, I'm going to be playing at Samwell next year," Eric gestures at the boys' hat "and my dad thinks that means I'm interested in the NHL, but I just don't really follow it." He shrugs a bit and tries to figure out what the odd look on the taller boys face meant.  
"You're going to be playing hockey for Samwell next year?" Eric still couldn't figure out what the look the boy is giving him means, but he's used to people being surprised he plays such a violent sport, with how small he is. He looks away for a moment to check the progress of the line, and notices he needs to move up to fill a gap. He turns back to answer.  
"Yeah...I know, I don’t look like a hockey player." He still can't read the guy, but he goes on "I used to figure skate, but I switched to hockey when we moved away from my coach." The boy doesn't reply right away and Eric is afraid he's said something wrong when one of the other members of his group grabs him from behind and yanks him backward.  
"Jaques! Who is your new friend? Were you not going to introduce us?" Eric doesn't know how to handle the interruption, it is so unexpected. He stares at them blankly for a minute before realizing he never introduced himself in the first place.  
"Oh I'm sorry, where are my manners? I'm Eric." He sticks his hand out to this newcomer, and he shakes it enthusiastically.  
"Shitty." He says confidently. Eric recoils a little, confused as to what he's calling shitty. "Oh no brah, that's my name." The guy explains, which leaves Eric more confused than ever. "And this beautiful specimen of a man right here is Jack."  
"Nice to meet you both," Eric says, looking at them, unsure what he's supposed to do now.  
"Eric here is going to be playing hockey at Samwell next year," Jack says to Shitty, adding emphasis that Eric doesn't know if he should be offended by.  
"No fucking shit!" The exclamation startled Eric enough that he takes a little step back, nervous. "Bro! Jack here is the SMH captain! We're all on the team!" He gestures to the people behind him, who appear to be deep in a conversation. "Well except Lardo there, she's our manager." Eric has no idea what to do with that information, he looks to Jack for confirmation but the boy won't meet his eyes now.  
"That's awesome!" He tells Shitty, "I'm going to tour the school tomorrow actually, it's part of the reason I'm here." He takes a step forward in line, noticing it moving ahead without him, he's getting close to the counter now.  
"Taddy tour." Shitty nods sagely. "You're coming to see Faber, right?" Eric nods, it was the first thing he planned on seeing.  
"Are you in an official tour group?" Jack asked this time, looking at Eric carefully.  
"No, we were just going to look around." Eric hadn't wanted to be rushed around the campus with a group of prospective students. Jack nods in reply.  
"We could probably show you around, especially Faber," Jack looks to Shitty to confirm this, and Shitty nods enthusiastically.  
"Oh wow, that is so sweet of Y'all are you sure?" He doesn't want to impose on these people, they're strangers, and one of them is going to be his Captain next year.  
"Wouldn't have offered if I wasn't," Jack tells him firmly, then points behind Eric. He turns around to notice he'd made it to the front of the line.  
"Can I get a Falconers hat?" He asks the man behind the counter.  
"Sure thing kid, 20 bucks." Eric hands over the money and sticks the hat on his head. Jack steps out of line with him while his friends step forward to buy merch.  
"So we should probably exchange numbers so we can meet up tomorrow?" Jack asks a bit timidly.  
"Oh yeah, of course! Eric agrees, unlocking his phone and handing it over. Jack puts in his number and hands it back to him.  
"Is it okay if I give it to Shitty too?" Jack asks "he'll probably want it."  
"Definitely." Eric looks at the time on his phone and frowns. "I actually have to go find my dad now, but I'll see you tomorrow?"  
"Yes, text me tonight and we can make a plan." Jack agrees. The rest of his group come over, and Eric has just enough time to meet the other three people before he was to leave. He says goodbye to them all. And when he finds Coach near the exit, he tells him all about the crazy coincidence and how they now have a tour guide for the next day.  
They drive into Samwell that night because it was cheaper to get a hotel there than in Boston. On the drive there, Eric thinks about blue eyes and how next year is already looking so much better than he had ever hoped. He had imagined himself finding friends off the hockey team, he had never imagined the other players themselves being people who would like him, but Jack and Shitty had seemed to like him. He wasn't sure he would ever have the confidence to come out to his team, but he hoped that these people would accept him if he did. And as ridiculous as it was, a part of him was holding onto a hope of blue eyes.


End file.
